Interview with Richard Rankin

Tell us about your character.
I play Detective Inspector Elliot Carne who is the detective on the Ivy Moxam case. Over the series, he and Lisa Merchant (Valene Kane) investigate twists and turns around Ivy’s story. It drives a bit of a wedge between Merchant and Carne as there is a unique element to Ivy and, without realising it, Carne gets drawn into it. He starts to behave quite uncharacteristically, but can’t quite understand why Lisa is behaving in a different manner. Under normal circumstances, Carne and Merchant would be very professional and detached from the victims, so there’s something unique about this. The dynamic has changed.

What attracted you to Thirteen?
I found it intriguing that you have this young female, who emerges after 13 years of captivity, and how it should be this momentous celebrated occasion, but in fact it seems to deteriorate the older relationships. They all start falling apart and all seem to be negatively affected.

Describe Merchant and Carne’s relationship.
Carne has a lot of love for Merchant, but the love runs deeper than you first thought. I think he has issues with women generally and isn’t overly open about how he feels about anyone, but it turns out he has much stronger feelings for Lisa than he originally thought he would. However, he has difficulty expressing those feelings.

Describe Ivy?
Lost, damaged, very vulnerable and in need of a cuddle. This girl appears out of the blue, claiming to be Ivy Moxam. We find out that historically a couple of girls have come forward claiming to be her, so it creates doubt in this new case. Carne gets very drawn into Ivy - he feels he has to protect her, but it’s at the cost of the investigation and causes subsequent damage to his relationship with Lisa Merchant.